Metallic peit



UNITED sTATEs PATENT oFFIoE.

WILLIAM FIFE, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

METALLIC PEN.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 5,737, dated August 29, 1848'.

sential to the most important of my improvements, it yet affords facilities in the manufacturing of the pens, enabling me to render them more perfect than when made in one piece.

In the accompanying drawings yI have represented my pens on-a scale many times larger than the actual pen, for the purpose of showing its character and manner of construction themore distinctly.l

Figures l. and :2 are magnified views of my pens as made in three pieces; Fig. l being the under or inner lside thereof, and Fig. 2 the upper or ba'c'k.-

A, A are the nibs'which consist'of separate pieces, and B the sheath or upper portion to which the nibs are to be attached by riveting or otherwise.

In the ordinary manner of constructing gold pens, the piece of metal of which the nibs are 'formed is too thick and the split too long. lVhen the nibs are made separate, they will have to be made of plates of metal considerably thinner, and Ahammer hardened or otherwise compressed, so as to ,give them a high spring temper; the split may consequently be shorter, which will cause the pen to spring more like the quill pen. The insides of the nibs which form the split of the pen, may be accurately ground, and highly polished, so as to form a perfect joint when the parts are brought together, which is a matter of very great importance in metallic pens.

Another advantage is that the sheath or upper part of the pen may be made of a cheaper material than the nibs. For instance, the sheath may be made of silver and the nibs of gold; pens made in this manner will be as valuable for use as they would be if made altogether of gold, and can` be sold cheaper.

My principal improvement consists in making the nibs nearto their points curved or deflected to the right, so that the split, at the point of contact with the paper, will correspond with the slope of the letters.

This curvature ordeflection may be varied the better to suit various hands, but there is a medium curvature which will suit by far the greater number of persons. This deflection or curvature is distinctly shown at o, c, in the drawings.

The characteristic difference between my lpen and the oblique steel pens of various awkward shapes for'att-aininga like end will be readily seen. My pen varies but littley in its appearance from the ordinary metallic pen; it is dipped with equal facility into inkstands of any of the ordinary kinds, and may be inclosed in the ordinary pocket-pen or pencil case. f

One of my improvementsit will be seen may be applied to pens that have not the oblique points, namely the making ofthe nibs separate from thev sheath, (see Fig. 3) and as therek are many persons who write a back hand, ofvarious degreesfof slope, the straight or undeflected nibs will be used by such persons.

.One of kmy improvements, namely, the de- `tlected point may be used in the steel pen,

or in the gold or other fine metallic pen when it is made of one piece. Y See Figs. 4 and 5.

Having described thus fully the nature of my improvements inv metallic pens, and shown the advantages thereof, what I'claim therein as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is- I claim the making of metallic pens with a curvature or deflection to the right near to the eXtreme points of the nibs, substantially in the manner rand lfor the purpose herein fully made known. Y 1

FIFE.

Witnesses v JOHN A. ELKINTON, MATTHEW 4.F.Irr. 

